Box Score Kissimmee, FL -- The Bradley Braves earned a 74-64 victory over the Liberty Flames in the third-place game of the Terry's Chocolate ESPN Events Invitational.
The first half opened up with BU racing out to a 13-5 lead on the backs of three straight triples made by
Alex Huibregtse and
AJ Smith, which were three of BU's six made first-half three-pointers.
Demarion Burch put his fingerprints all over the first half with a perfect 6/6 shooting for 13 points, four rebounds and one assist. The Braves owned the glass in the first half with 17-7 rebounding edge after the first twenty minutes, with five of those being offensive rebounds that led to seven second-chance points.
The Braves held every single member of the Flames under double-figure scoring in the first half, with JJ Harper leading the way with seven points on 3/7 shooting. However, the Flames would respond in the later stages of the half with a 13-2 run over the last 3:12 to pull back with 10 points. They did it on the back of their defense, which forced four turnovers in that stretch. For the half, BU shot 62% from the floor, 54% from three, and 1/2 from the free throw line while Liberty converted on 48% from the floor, 22% from three and 9/14 from the free throw line.
The second half started with a defensive duel, as the Braves led the scoring 12-9 for the first 11 minutes. The first four buckets for the Braves were all scored by a different player. Despite the tight defense, the Braves capitalized on their misses with 15 second-chance points, eight coming in the second half of the contest. On the other side of the floor, Liberty had just four second-chance points in the contest, all coming in the second half. Bradley's size played a big role in securing this victory, as the Braves finished the contest with 16 total rebounds. The Braves' 3-2 lead with 19:19 was the closest the contest ever got for the Flames. In the end, the Braves handed Liberty just their second loss on the season, walking away from the tournament with a third-place finish.
Burch led the Braves with 21 points in the contest, adding to his day with a pair of assists and steals, along with eight rebounds. Eight of Burch's points came in the second half, scoring from the charity stripe, the paint and from beyond the arc. The junior ended his day shooting 8-10 from the field, playing 33 minutes. Johnson and Huibregtse each notched 12 points, as Huibregtse shot 4-5 for three. Johnson led the Braves in assists and steals, with five and three respectively.
Ahmet Jonovic earned three blocks in the contest, grabbing five defensive rebounds in his 20 minutes on the floor. Jonovic also collected three assists.
Corey Thomas came off the bench to add 10 points for the Braves.
Montana Wheeler had four assists and four points for Bradley.
The Braves are back home on Tuesday, December 2, to face the Washington State Cougars in Carver Arena at 7 PM.
